Spain's loss to Russia in the round of 16 drew an average audience of nearly 13 million.GETTY IMAGES
Spain's loss to Russia on Sunday featured the fifth-highest peak audience ever for a game involving the Spanish national team. During the penalty kicks that decided the match, a total of 14.8 million viewers were tuned in to Mediaset's Telecinco, which translated to a market share of 81.1%. The game's average audience was 12.8 million. The highest peak audience for a La Roja match was recorded during Euro 2012, when 18.14 million were tuned in for the team's semifinal win over Portugal (AS, 7/2).
Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) President Luis Rubiales said after Spain's elimination that he "does not regret for one moment" his decision to sack coach Julen Lopetegui two days before Spain's World Cup debut. He said, "Today there is pain and it is a very difficult situation because they have eliminated us, but when you have security from having done things with responsibility and conviction, you have to go forward" (EL MUNDO, 7/1).
The "principal reason" why Argentine FA execs have not sacked coach Jorge Sampaoli is reportedly the "high cost of his release clause," which is valued at $20M. The problem "is more severe because of the devaluation of the Argentine peso." When Sampaoli was hired in June '17, $1 was worth 16.33 Argentine pesos. Under the current conversion rate, $1 is worth 28.3 Argentine pesos (OLÉ, 7/2).
